Edible spread containing a natural fat phase

ABSTRACT

Edible W/O emulsion spread comprising a continuous fat phase which contains a natural structuring hardstock fat, which hardstock fat contains at least 45 wt. % of SOS triglyceride (S is C18-C24 fatty acid residue and 0 is an oleic acid residue). A fat with such composition may be isolated from plants belonging to the genus Allanblackia or the genus Pentadesma.

The present invention deals with an edible emulsion spread containing anatural fat phase and a process for its preparation. BACKGROUND ANDPRIOR ART

[0001] Butter is an edible emulsion spread consisting of a continuousfat phase and an aqueous phase which is dispersed as fine droplets inthe fat phase. The fat phase consists of dairy fat, a 100% natural fat.Margarine too is a fat continuous emulsion, but margarine fat is notnatural, but has been processed in order to give margarine propertiesdesired for a spread. The fat phase of margarine and of similar fatcontinuous emulsion spreads is a mixture of a fat which is fully liquid(the oil part of the fat phase) and a fat which is solid at ambienttemperature.

[0002] The solid fat, denoted as hardstock fat, serves to structure thefat phase and helps to stabilize the emulsion. For imparting to commonmargarine a semi-solid, plastic, spreadable consistency this stabilizingand structuring functionality plays an important role. The crystals ofthe solid fat form a network throughout the liquid oil resulting into astructured fat phase. The aqueous phase droplets are fixed within thespaces of the lattice of solid fat crystals. In this way coalescence ofthe droplets and separation of the heavier aqueous phase from the fatphase is prevented.

[0003] The technology of spread processing is well established. The typeof fat and the ratio of liquid oil and solid fat are chosen such thatafter proper processing of the fat blend with an aqueous phase a plasticproduct with a suitable consistency and mouthfeel is obtained.

[0004] Vegetable oils are the usual source for preparing margarine fats.Vegetable fats are preferred over animal fats because their unsaturatedfat composition enhances the spread's nutritional value. Besides that,vegetable fats are an abundant and relatively cheap resource. However,natural, non-processed vegetable fats which are suited as hardstock fatare rather rare.

[0005] Fractionation, hydrogenating and interesterification are thenormally used treatments for turning liquid vegetable oils into suitablehardstock fats.

[0006] The present trend in food processing is to avoid processing,particularly chemical processing as much as possible and to opt fornatural ingredients and natural processing. Natural means that theingredients have a natural origin and after harvesting have beensubjected to no other treatment than a refining or purificationtreatment and to no modification treatment whatsoever. This trendstrongly appeals to present consumer appreciation. It also maycontribute to the economy of the production process.

[0007] Generally, fats with a high content of HUH triglycerides showgood structuring properties. H denotes a C16-C24 saturated fatty acidresidue, such as palmitic acid (C16) or stearic acid (C18) and U denotesan unsaturated C18 fatty acid residue, such as oleic acid (C18:1) orlinoleic acid (C18:2).

[0008] Cocoa butter is the only unprocessed fat which contains a highamount of HUH triglycerides and which has been used for margarineproduction. However, use of cocoa butter as hardstock fat for spreadpreparation entails serious disadvantages. Cocoa butter has a naturalhigh content of palmitic acid. Palmitic acid has a well establishednegative effect on blood cholesterol level. Food containing a highpalmitic acid content may contribute to increased incidence ofcardiovascular disease. Further cocoa butter in its main application,chocolate manufacture, suffers from severe re-crystallisation phenomena,which is known as fat blooming. Similar defects are feared in spreadpreparation which would easily spoil the product's consistency.

[0009] Finally, cocoa butter is generally too expensive to serve ashardstock fat in margarine manufacture.

[0010] Shea fat, also having a high content of HUH triglycerides, ailneeds to be fractionated before use, because it contains up to 10 wt. %of non-saponifiable matter. The stearin contains 73 wt. % of HUH wherenearly all H are stearic acid residues and nearly all U are oleic acidresidues. The high costs of fractionation are prohibitive for thecommercial use of shea stearin in spread manufacture. Natural,non-processed hardstock fats with a high content of HUH in which Hmainly is a stearic acid residue are still much sought ingredients forthe manufacture of emulsion spreads with a wholly natural fat phase. Thepresent invention satisfies the need of a natural non-processedhardstock fat with such triglyceride content.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The present invention is based on the discovery of vegetable fatswhich have such beneficial triglyceride composition that they can beused as such as a natural hardstock fat for spread manufacture. Thosefats do not need any modification after refining. The fats are knownunder the names Allanblackia fat and Pentadesma fat. They contain a highStOSt content: about 65 wt. % of the triglycerides of Allanblackia fatand about 48 wt. % of the triglycerides of Pentadesma fat is StOSt,where St is a stearic acid residue and O is an oleic acid residue.

[0012] The present invention provides an edible W/O emulsion spreadcomprising 70-20 wt. % of an aqueous phase dispersed in 30-80 wt. % of afat phase which fat phase is a mixture of 50-99 wt. % of a vegetabletriglyceride oil A and 1-50 wt. % of a structuring triglyceride fat B,which fat consists of 5-100 wt. % of a hardstock fat C and up to 95 wt.% of a fat D, characterized in that at least 45 wt. % of the hardstockfat C triglycerides consist of SOS triglycerides, where S denotes afatty acid residue with a saturated C18-C24 carbon chain and O denotesan oleic acid residue and with the proviso that any hardstock fat Cwhich has been obtained by fractionation, hydrogenation, esterificationor interesterification of the fat is excluded.

[0013] The invention further provides a process for the preparation ofsuch edible W/O emulsion spreads.

DETAILS OF THE INVENTION

[0014] The present invention relates to edible emulsion spreads,particularly to fat continuous emulsion spreads such as margarine. Theinvention can be generally used for the manufacture of common fatcontinuous spreads irrespective of their fat content.

[0015] Allanblackia fat is denoted with a variety of indigenous namesincluding Sonkyi fat. It is harvested from the African plantAllanblackia of which several species such as A. floribunda and A.stuhlmannii are known. Allanblackia belongs to the subfamilyClusioideae, which is part of the family Guttiferae. All species share asubstantially common fatty acids pattern and triglyceride composition.Allanblackia fat had found some early employment as an ingredient inchocolate manufacture (EP 321227) and in the soap industry (J.Am.OilChem.Soc.,62,no.5, 1985, pp. 910-911), but it has never been consideredfor use in the manufacture of fat continuous emulsion spreads.

[0016] Pentadesma fat is also obtained from an African plant, the treePentadesma butyracea. The suggested use of the oil is for soapmanufacture. It has never been considered as an ingredient for margarinemanufacture.

[0017] We have found that both fats are ideal hardstock fats formargarine manufacture. After refining no modification processing isnecessary. By admixture with a liquid oil a fat phase is obtained whichshows the steep melting curve desired for margarine fat. A spreadprepared with such fat phase preserves its solid consistency in therange of refrigerator temperature up to ambient or even slightlyelevated temperatures, while when swallowed it gives a pleasant quickmelting sensation in the mouth.

[0018] Allanblackia fat has a high (60-80 wt. %) content of SOStriglycerides, a low SSS content and the remainder of the fat mainlyconsisting of SOO.

[0019] With a content of 48 wt. % StOSt also Pentadesma fat withoutmodification can be used as a hardstock fat.

[0020] A natural fat containing at least 45 wt. % of SOS triglyceridesis a much desired hardstock fat. Until now no method is known forrealizing production of such fats without a modification treatment.Fractionation was inevitable in order to increase the SOS content.

[0021] Most preferably, fat B of the present fat phase consists fully ofthe natural hardstock fat C containing at least 45 wt. % SOS. However,up to 95 wt. %, preferably only up to 50 wt. % of fat C may besubstituted by another fat D. This fat might have structuring propertiesof itself. Generally, besides the hardstock fat C, any fat D may bepresent which does not adversely affects the quality of the final spreadproduct and which together with fat C provides sufficient structuringfunctionality to fat blend B. Suitable fats D are palm oil, palm kernelfat, coconut fat, babassu fat, shea fat and their fractions. Fats D mayhave been subjected by enzymatic rearrangement. Like fat C, preferablyfat D too qualifies as a natural fat, so that the spread's fat phase canqualify as natural. Preferably, the unmodified high-SOS hardstock fat Cconsists of Allanblackia fat and/or Pentadesma fat or a mixture of both.

[0022] The invention further provides a process for the preparation ofsaid edible W/O emulsion spread which comprises the steps

[0023] emulsifying 70-20 wt. % of an aqueous phase with 30-80 wt. % of afat phase which is a mixture of 50-99 wt. % of a vegetable oil A and1-50 wt. % of a structuring fat B consisting of fat C and optional fat Das defined in claim 1,

[0024] cooling and working the emulsion to obtain a spreadable emulsion,

[0025] characterized in that at least 45 wt. % and preferably at least50 wt. % of the triglycerides of fat C consist of SOS triglycerides andwith the proviso that use of a fat C which has been obtained byfractionation, hydrogenation, esterification or interesterification ofthe fat is excluded.

[0026] The invention excludes the use of hardstock fats C which havebeen obtained by fractionation, hydrogenation, esterification orinteresterification and, more generally, hardstock fats are excludedwhich have been obtained by other processing than a refining orpurification treatment.

[0027] The liquid oil of the fat phase may be any liquid vegetable oiland suitably the fat phase is prepared with one or more of the commoncommodity oils chosen from the group consisting of: rapeseed oil,sunflower oil, cottonseed oil, soybean oil, olive oil and mixtures ofthose oils. Natural refining processes are readily available.

[0028] Generally, a blending ratio of 30 wt. % of structuring fat B and70 wt. % of liquid oil A affords a suitable margarine fat phase. A fatphase when prepared for example with 30 wt. % of unprocessedAllanblackia fat and 70 wt. % of rapeseed oil contains only 22 wt. % (ontotal fat phase) of saturated fatty acids (SAFA) which is a fine valuefrom a nutritional point of view.

[0029] A proper amount of hardstock fat depends on the type of spread.The composition of a wrapper margarine requires more solid fat than thatof a tub margarine to obtain the desired consistency. On the other siderelatively more hardstock is necessary when it contains a small amountof structuring triglycerides such as StOSt.

[0030] Although the spreads of the invention are said to be preparedwith a vegetable fat phase, the invention also comprises spreads where apart of the fat phase has been substituted by dairy fat.

[0031] The aqueous phase may contain the usual spread ingredientscomprising water, emulsifiers, gelling and/or thickening agents, salt,colouring agents, flavours, preservation agents and dairy proteins.

[0032] The aqueous phase may also contain a dispersed fat phase so thateventually an O/W/O-emulsion would result which is a subspecies of thespreads according to the present invention.

[0033] For the preparation of the spread use is made of common spreadmanufacturing technology: The aqueous phase and the fat phase areprepared by mixing the respective ingredients. Then both phases areemulsified. The crude pre-emulsion is subjected to the usual cooling andworking treatments employing scraped surface heat exchangers and pinstirrers so that eventually a plastic spread product is obtained. Thisestablished technology is well known to the man skilled in the art.Details can be found in various textbooks such as K. A. Alexandersen,Margarine Processing Plants and Equipment (Vol.4, Bailey's IndustrialOil and Fat Products, Wiley and Sons Inc., New York 1996).

[0034] Preferably the invented spread is prepared with only naturalingredients.

EXAMPLE

[0035] Allanblackia floribunda fat was purified under standard refiningconditions. A spread according to the invention was prepared using thefat blend of Table 1 for preparing a pre-emulsion according to Table 2.The pre-emulsion was processed in a A-A-C line under the conditionslisted in Table 3. An assay of the resulting spread is shown in Table 4.The product is easily spreadable from the refrigerator. The spread showsa steep melting line which causes a very pleasant mouthfeel. Thehardness values point to good ambient stability. TABLE 1 Fat blend wt. %Rapeseed oil 70 Allanblackia 30 SOS 21 SOO 12 SOS/SLS 78 total SAFA 22Solid fat N5  24.5 N10 22.4 N15 20 N20 16 N25 11.4 N30 5.3 N35 0

[0036] TABLE 2 Pre-emulsion wt. % Fat blend 80 Bolec ZT 0.32 Hymono 89030.035 Flavour trace B-carotene 0.048 Water 18.6 K-sorbate 0.073 Wheyprotein 0.55 Salt 0.28 Citric acid 0.05 End pH 4.6

[0037] TABLE 3 Process settings: Premix 60° C., pump 4.45 kg/h, pressure8 bar A-unit 1 A-unit 2 C-unit Temp in ° C. 44 17  12 Temp out ° C. 1712  14 Volume ml 18.3 18.3 150 rpm /min 600 600 200 direct storage: 15°and 5° C.

[0038] TABLE 4 Stevens 4.4 hardness (g) of spread C. 1 week 2 weeks 4weeks 9 weeks  5° 70 67 60 56 15° 62 70 86 94 20° 60 76 82

1. An edible W/O emulsion spread comprising 70-20 wt. % of an aqueousphase dispersed in 30-80 wt. % of a fat phase which fat phase is amixture of 50-99 wt. % of a vegetable triglyceride oil A and 1-50 wt. %of a structuring triglyceride fat B, which fat consists of 5-100 wt. %of a hardstock fat C and up to 95 wt. % of a fat D, where at least 45wt. % of the hardstock fat C triglycerides consist of SOS triglyceridesand where S denotes a fatty acid residue with a saturated C18-C24 carbonchain and O denotes an oleic acid residue and with the proviso that anyhardstock fat C which has been obtained by fractionation, hydrogenation,esterification or interesterification of the fat is excluded.
 2. Aspread according to claim 1, where a hardstock fat C which has beensubjected to other processing than a refining or purification treatmentis excluded.
 3. A spread according to claim 1, where at least 50 wt. %of the triglycerides of the hardstock fat C consist of SOStriglycerides.
 4. A spread according to claim 1, where the triglyceridefat B consists of 50-100 wt. % of hardstock fat C and up to 50 wt. % offat D.
 5. A spread according to claim 1, where the triglyceride fat Bfully consists of hardstock fat C.
 6. A spread according to claim 1,where the hardstock fat C consists of Allanblackia fat or Pentadesma fator a mixture of both.
 7. A process for the preparation of an edible W/Oemulsion spread comprising the steps emulsifying 70-20 wt. % of anaqueous phase with 30-80 wt. % of a fat phase which is a mixture of50-99 wt. % of a vegetable oil A and 1-50 wt. % of a structuring fat Bconsisting of fat C and fat D as defined in claim 1, cooling and workingthe emulsion to obtain a spreadable emulsion, where at least 45 wt. % ofthe triglycerides of fat C consist of SOS triglycerides and with theproviso that use of a fat C which has been obtained by fractionation,hydrogenation, esterification or interesterification of the fat isexcluded.
 8. A process according to claim 7, where use of a fat C whichhas been subjected to other processing than a refining or purificationtreatment is excluded.